PolyQuiz — Interactive Real-Time Quiz Platform

Ranked #1 out of 20+ teams in a university software engineering capstone project.

PolyQuiz is a full-stack, real-time multiplayer quiz platform built by a team of 6 developers. It supports Android (Flutter), Desktop/Web (Angular + Electron), and a shared Node.js/Express back-end — enabling users to create, share, and play quizzes with friends or the public.

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Table of Contents

• Overview
• Architecture
• Tech Stack
• Key Features
• Project Structure
• Getting Started
• Screenshots
• Team & Contributions

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Overview

PolyQuiz lets players join rooms in real-time, answer timed questions (multiple-choice, free-text, or numeric), and compete solo or in teams — all while hosts manage the game flow, evaluate answers, and view live statistics. The platform also includes social features (friends, chat channels, profiles), an in-app store, AI-powered answer grading, and full internationalization (English/French).

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Architecture

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        Clients                               │
│                                                              │
│   ┌──────────────────┐          ┌──────────────────┐         │
│   │  Flutter Mobile  │          │  Angular Desktop │         │
│   │  (Android)       │          │  (Web / Electron)│         │
│   └────────┬─────────┘          └────────┬─────────┘         │
│            │   Socket.IO + HTTP          │                   │
└────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────┘
             │                             │
             ▼                             ▼
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                   Node.js / Express Server                   │
│                                                              │
│   ┌────────────┐  ┌────────────────┐  ┌────────────────┐     │
│   │   REST API │  │  Socket.IO Hub │  │  Timer Service │     │
│   │  (Quizzes, │  │  (40+ events)  │  │  (Per-room     │     │
│   │   History) │  │                │  │   countdowns)  │     │
│   └──────┬─────┘  └───────┬────────┘  └────────────────┘     │
│          │                │                                  │
│          ▼                ▼                                  │
│   ┌────────────┐  ┌────────────────┐                         │
│   │  MongoDB   │  │  Firebase      │                         │
│   │  (Quizzes) │  │  (Users, Auth, │                         │
│   │            │  │   Chat, Stats) │                         │
│   └────────────┘  └────────────────┘                         │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Mobile Client	Flutter (Dart), Firebase SDK, Socket.IO Client, Provider/GetX, fl_chart
Desktop/Web Client	Angular 16, TypeScript, Angular Material, Electron, Socket.IO Client, Chart.js, Tailwind CSS
Back-End	Node.js, Express.js, TypeScript, Socket.IO, TypeDI (Dependency Injection)
Databases	MongoDB (quiz data), Firebase Firestore (users, chat, game history)
Authentication	Firebase Auth (email/password), JWT, bcrypt
Cloud Services	Firebase Auth, Firestore, Cloud Storage, Cloud Messaging (push notifications)
AI	OpenAI API (automated free-text answer evaluation)
Testing	Mocha, Chai, Sinon, Supertest (server) · Karma, Jasmine (Angular)
DevOps	ESLint, Prettier, NYC code coverage, Nodemon

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Key Features

Game Modes & Question Types

• Classic Mode — individual competition with real-time scoring
• Team Mode — team creation, join, and aggregate scoring
• Observer Mode — spectators watch gameplay live, switch between players
• 3 Question Types: Multiple Choice (QCM), Free-Text (QRL), Numeric with tolerance (QRE)

Real-Time Multiplayer (Socket.IO)

• Room creation with unique codes and host controls
• Live answer tracking with animated statistics
• Server-side countdown timers with pause/resume and panic mode
• Instant score updates, bonus multipliers (1.2x), and final rankings
• 40+ socket events for seamless game orchestration

Quiz Management

• Create, edit, and publish quizzes with image support
• Quiz validation, visibility controls (public/private), and owner tracking
• Test mode — simulate a full game before publishing

Social & Communication

• In-game chat with per-room channels and moderation tools
• Friend system (add, accept/decline requests, friends-only games)
• User profiles with avatar upload/cropping, stats, and achievements

User Progression

• Virtual currency, prestige levels, and achievements
• In-app store for cosmetics and features
• Detailed game history and personal statistics

Internationalization

• Full English and French support (Angular: ngx-translate, Flutter: custom LanguageService)

AI-Powered Grading

• OpenAI integration for automated free-text (QRL) answer evaluation

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Project Structure

projet/
├── client_leger/      # Flutter mobile app (Android)
├── client_lourd/      # Angular desktop/web app (+ Electron)
├── common/            # Shared TypeScript interfaces, enums, constants
├── server/            # Node.js/Express back-end with Socket.IO
└── README.md          # ← You are here

Each sub-folder contains its own README with detailed setup instructions and architecture breakdown.

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Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js ≥ 16 and npm
• MongoDB running locally or a cloud connection string
• Firebase project with Auth, Firestore, and Storage enabled
• Flutter SDK ≥ 2.18 (for the mobile client)
• Angular CLI ≥ 16 (for the desktop/web client)

Quick Start

# 1. Clone the repository
git clone <repo-url> && cd projet

# 2. Start the server
cd server
npm install
npm start        # runs on http://localhost:3000

# 3. Start the Angular desktop client
cd ../client_lourd
npm install
npm start        # runs on http://localhost:4200

# 4. Start the Flutter mobile client
cd ../client_leger/polyquiz
flutter pub get
flutter run

Note: Configure your own Firebase credentials and MongoDB connection string in the appropriate .env and config files before running. See each sub-folder's README for details.